CHENGDU, Aug. 16 -- Government officials, scholars and religious leaders agreed upon development and cooperation as a means to eliminate extremism and terrorism at a meeting in southwest China's Chengdu Wednesday.

Over 70 attendees from China, 16 Arab countries and the Arab League discussed Belt and Road building and anti-extremism during a two-day round table that ended Wednesday.

A very important cause of extremism is developmental failure, according to Deng Li, director-general of the Department of West Asian and North African affairs at the Chinese foreign ministry.

Development in Arab countries under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative will be beneficial in removing the grounds for extremism, he said.

Muslims should be the major force in combating extremism, Shawki Allam, the Grand Mufti of Egypt, said. He called for a theoretical system to contend incorrect ideas and guide young Muslims onto the right path.

Huang Hui, director of the Arabic department of University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, noted the huge young population in Arab countries.

"High rates of unemployment and poverty have deprived young people of dignity and hope, which must be addressed so that terrorism does not draw them in," Huang said.

The round table was a part of a seminar and dialogues on China-Arab relations, which was initiated in 2005 and is held every two years.